Royal Flair Majestic 2006 Review

By Greg Williams, pics Stuart Grant

Royal Flair pitches its top-of-the-range Majestic as a “five star hotel, a self-sufficient home on wheels”, and I wouldn’t want to argue. The only thing missing is room service.

What the company’s spruiking means is that it comes with everything you need built-in; even the internal layout could be seen as nudging the standard you’d expect from some of the better hotels.

The Majestic comes in a generous range of internal configurations; the one you see here has an ensuite section at the tail end and the bedroom at the front.

The first thing you notice about the new Majestic caravan is the exterior walls. They are flat rather than ridged and use a different construction from all previous Majestics and, for that matter, all other Royal Flair caravans.

Billy Deralas of Royal Flair says that for this particular van, which is on sale at Ian Grant’s Caravans at Traralgon in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley, the company made a radical departure, dispensing with the usual sandwich panel construction and instead opting for something you usually see on a boat.

“We wanted to try something new,” Billy says. They started by using polystyrene in the walls for insulation, and then placed marine plywood over that. The marine ply was then given a gel coating that is both tough and flexible.

“There is a lot of movement in vans, so there is less chance of hairline cracks,” Billy says of this fibreglass construction method. And as far as durability and weather resistance goes, it’s like water off a duck’s back.

Billy says the company is already planning to extend the idea to other vans it builds at its factory in Melbourne’s caravan heartland, Campbellfield. Royal Flair is also looking at making vans with moulded fibreglass front and back sections and aluminium in the middle.

The Majestic sits on a galvanised chassis with four 195x14in light truck alloy wheels (with spats) on galvanised wheel arches, a 2in heavy duty axle and electric brakes.

There are drop-down jacks, easy lifters and steel mesh on the A-frame, which could come in handy for storing things you don’t want to keep in the van or in the boot – such as a dirty barbecue plate. Also on the A-frame are two 4.5kg gas bottles and a tap.

The spare wheel is mounted on the rear bumper and the Majestic has plenty of stone protection – a water tank guard underneath, a stone shield and pebble guard.

For protection from the elements, there is a large A&E 8500 awning that covers almost the length of the van.

Ian Grant thinks this new Majestic is a quality unit. As Royal Flair’s top-of-the-range van, the Majestic is pitched at people who want the best.

“It’s a very, very strong van – I honestly can’t find anything stronger than a Royal Flair,” he says.

On the inside this van is similar in style to other Royal Flair models, with quality timber panelling and all the features that make it its top-of-the-range unit.

The ensuite has a huge fibreglass shower, a separate vacuum toilet and a wash basin (which could have been a little bit bigger) – all things that you get with any of the Majestic layouts.

But what really gives the Majestic a five-star feel is the fittings in the middle of the van.

For entertainment, there is a DNA unit to handle all your audio-visual needs, and it’s coupled to an LCD monitor for watching TV and DVDs. On the roof you will find two Winegard antennae – one for TV and one for radio, and the entertainment system plays through three speakers, two inside and one outside.

If you add the two speakers on the TV monitor, then you can watch movies in four-speaker stereo.

Above the entertainment system is the six-way power control panel with voltmeter to monitor the two batteries, which are charged off the car, but provision is also made to add a solar system. The Majestic also has a 15A transformer.

The kitchen area has a glass-covered four-burner stove with grill and oven. Above the cooktop is a rangehood with two halogen lights, and above that is the Sanyo microwave oven in matching stainless steel.

The fridge is a three-way Dometic RM2453 with a 120L capacity. There is plenty of kitchen storage both above and below the benches – including two drawers for pots and pans.

All interior lighting is 12V halogen, which can be effortlessly controlled from a switch panel next to the bed, and there are plenty of powerpoints wherever you need them – about 14 (excluding the one outside), with those in the kitchen well placed for the benches.

Next to the kitchen sink is a built-in rubbish bin, and the sink has a mixer tap and a large draining area, all of which can be covered for extra bench space when not in use.

All the taps have city mains pressure water, and the water level gauges are on the wall above the sink.

The island double bed (6ft 2in x 4ft 6in, with an innerspring mattress) can be raised on gas struts to allow access to the storage area underneath, and if you need to sleep more people, the dinette also converts to a bed.

There are mirrored wardrobes on each side of the bed as well as two corner cupboards.

The dinette table is not huge, but is ample for two people and is well placed to serve as extra kitchen bench space if you need it. The seating and cushions are all made of high-density foam.

The Galaxy windows are either wind-out or swing out on struts and come with roman blinds and quality drapes. The two skylights, which are at each end of the van with the air-conditioner between them, have concertina-type flyscreens and swing up on gas struts.

From all angles the Majestic has a very clean look, almost marine thanks to its construction methods and the use of windows that wouldn’t be out of place on a cabin cruiser.

Apart from the extra strength of the materials, one big advantage of the flat sides is that it’s easy to clean and maintain. The design is very futuristic, and we can expect to see more of this from Royal Flair. The tail-lights at the back are a good example of this – they are Hella units made from fibreglass that have been recessed into a panel.

Ian Grant says business is booming. “We sell vans throughout the length and breadth of Australia.

“If we’re not the highest selling in Australia, then we’re pretty close.”

And a lot of those sales are Royal Flair caravans.

“We sell at least 80 per cent of everything that Royal Flair builds. They’re very good people to deal with.”

Ian Grant’s Caravans, Princes Highway, Traralgon, Vic, (03) 5174 1381, www.iangrantscaravans.com.au

For Royal Flair dealers contact 37 Merola Way, Campbellfield, Vic 3061, (03) 9357 8118, email sales@royalflair.com.au, web www.royalflair.com.au